The Bachelorette Season 16, Week 10: Checking Up on Tayshia

The Bachelorette Season 16, Week 10 was all about joy!

The Bachelorette Season 16, Week 10 was hometowns week! There are overarching themes to Tayshia’s plan of attack each week and this column will be a weekly update on her journey to finding her person.

During The Bachelorette Season 16, Week 10, hometowns looked a little different this year, with the families meeting Tayshia at the LaQuinta resort, but the final four were also challenged to recreate their hometowns on the property for her. The major theme of the week was meeting the family, but it was also focused on joy. The warmth consumed all the men as they greeted Tayshia and introduced her to their families and took her on a tour of their “hometowns.” Shoutout to all the props team for this week, you were the real heroes.

Brendan, Zac, Ivan, and Ben all showed Tayshia different sides of themselves this week and one thing remained consistent throughout each hometown: the men were happy. Each family expressed to Tayshia that they had not seen their sons so happy in so long, and considering the background of each one that has been revealed, it makes sense.

All of Tayshia’s final four contestants have shown an incredible amount of depth and growth as we have never seen on this show before. It can definitely be attributed to the men being older than they were in the past few seasons, but also some credit needs to be given to all of the men who have been open to this journey as a learning process. Over the last 10 weeks, we have seen a group of men make great progress in their own emotional well-being, overcoming what has shaped them into the people they are today. And now those people are happy.

It all began with Brendan, whose niece joined himself and Tayshia for a mini carnival that was set up on the resort lawn. The three laughed, played games, and even got to dance around, showing a more playful side of Brendan that hasn’t been present yet. Tayshia noticed how great Brendan was interacting with his niece and noted how great of a father he would be, which is obviously super important to her.

When moving on to meeting his brother and sister-in-law, they all discussed how his and Tayshia’s bond over their divorces has gone to shape how they move forward with one another. They are both cautious, but it is evident that they each have progressed to a point where they are ready to move on into a future better suited for them both. Both of their spirits have been renewed after such a heartbreaking moment in their lives, which has surely brought them closer together.

Next up was Zac, who took Tayshia on a journey through a fake NYC where he had her hail a taxi, eat bagels and pizza, and sit on a bench at a Central Park backdrop. This was the most fun we have seen them have, and after their makeout sesh in the resort fountain, there is no denying that their deep connection is undeniable.

Tayshia then meets his parents and his brother, and although his brother’s skepticism was kind of a bummer, his parents expressed that they can tell how happy Tayshia makes Zac. She certainly has their approval now, and I do think he is the front runner.

Ivan’s hometown date was a Filipino cooking extravaganza led by a video of his niece doing the same. He opened up about his heritage and showed Tayshia a bit about how important this part of his life is. As soon as Tayshia walks in to meet Ivan’s parents, his mom immediately tells her “you’re beautiful,” which was a great way to start.

Both of his parents were incredibly welcoming, and with a surprise visit from Ivan’s brother, the date was complete with smiles. It is apparent how much he has overcome with his family and how these experiences lend him with the ability to care for Tayshia in a personal and adaptive way. Their connection is beautiful and left me full of butterflies.

Finally, Ben. The man who we had to see go, but who definitely made huge progress in coming into his own. The pair rollerblade down a fake Venice Beach, having loads of fun after some pretty tough conversations between the two in the past couple of weeks. Ben’s sister and their family friend are at the resort to greet Tayshia with open arms.

In a conversation with his sister, Ben realizes how happy he finally is with someone and admits that he loves her. It’s still a shame that he never got to tell her, but the fact that he has progressed with someone to the point where he can recognize that he can be happy is a huge milestone. Tayshia has shown him that joy is possible, even if she was not the one to continue this journey with him. Hopefully he only continues to progress and is able to find someone in the future who makes him just as happy.

The Bachelorette Season 16, Week 10 gave us some tough decisions for Tayshia to make next week.

Do you have any guesses on who she will pick? What did you think of Ben’s exit?